Scott Hahn: Holding on to Hope

The God of the Impossible

The following comes from In God's Company 2:

"Even if this should seem impossible in the eyes of the remnant of this people, shall it in those days be impossible in My eyes also, says the Lord of hosts?" -Zechariah 8:6

It seemed impossible that the Israelite nation would ever be restored, but "nothing is impossible with God" (Lk 1:37). Think of the most impossible situation in your life - a marriage that seems irreconcilable, a terminal illness, long-term compulsive behavior, a dead parish, mental illness, family breakdown, etc. What man considers impossible, the Lord sees as opportunities to manifest His almighty power. 

To strengthen your faith in the God of the impossible:

   * Read and pray God's Word. "Faith comes through hearing, and hearing by God's word" (Rm 10:17)
   * Ask others, including Saint Jude, to pray for you to see the most impossible situations in your life the way God sees them.
   * Go to Confession and repent of giving in to doubt.
   * Praise and thank the Lord for doing the impossible, even before He does it.
   * Share your faith in the God of the impossible by telling others about Him.

God will do more than we can ever ask for or imagine (Eph 3:20). He will do the impossible.

 Father, thank You for the hope that "will not leave us disappointed" (Rm 5:5).

"Whoever welcomes this little child on My account welcomes Me, and whoever welcomes Me welcomes Him Who sent Me; for the least one among you is the greatest." -Lk 9:48

Christmas, Suffering, and the Cross

The following comes from Michael Coren at the Catholic World Report:

I graduated from high school in England back in 1977, and it’s grimly sobering that some of the people reading this column weren’t even born then! Be warned younger people—middle age creeps up on as surreptitiously as the most careful and crafty beasts of prey. There was a somewhat perfunctory party where students and teachers said goodbye to one another, but most of us were only too eager to see the back of school and go on to university, work, fun, whatever. I remained close to my oldest friend, who later was the best man at my wedding, but otherwise I have not maintained contact with most of my contemporaries. Frankly, I can’t even remember their names.

There was one couple, however, who I do remember: Jonathan and Angela. I say “couple” because while only 17-years-old back then, they always seemed to have been together. Not in some prurient way but as surprisingly mature, committed young people. They were also both extremely good-looking, athletic, and intelligent. With so many gifts they could at least have been unpleasant and rude just to balance things out, but they were also kind and generous—the model couple.

I recall Angela speaking to me at the party about her plans but I think I was too busy trying to look at her legs to listen to what she was saying (I wasn’t a Catholic at the time, so it was okay!). After that I pretty much forgot about Angela and Jonathan. I married, came to Canada, started a family, and moved on.

Fast-forward twenty years to a phone-call from that oldest friend. “Are you still visiting London at Christmas,” he asked, “and do you remember Jonathan and Angela?” I said “Yes” to both questions. “They’ve apparently been living in Africa and have just returned to Britain. They’re having a party to say hello to everybody. They want us all to know, however, that Jonathan was in an accident. Angela has been a teacher at a small school, and there had been a fire. One little boy, Joshua, had been left inside. Jonathan ran back in and rescued the boy. The child is fine, but Jonathan is badly burnt; they don’t want anybody to be shocked when they see him.”

I did indeed fly to London that Christmas, and made my way to the apartment whereJonathan and Angela were staying. It was Christmas Eve, and I’d planned to go to Midnight Mass after seeing them. As for burns and the accident, I had worked as a war reporter, had seen death up close, and I was—so foolishly prided myself—a man of the world. I arrived a little early, and knocked on the door. There was Angela, as lovely as ever. “Come in, come in”, she said. “You’re the first here, and Jonathan will be overjoyed so see you.”

There he was. This once strikingly handsome young man, sitting in a large armchair, his face so disguised by scar tissue that I could barely see his eyes. One ear seemed to be almost missing, and he had hardly any hair. I tried to register nonchalance, but it never works. Then he spoke, and the voice was the same as it had been two decades ago. And the words, the words. “All right Coren, I know I look a bloody mess. But at least one of us has kept their figure.”

I tried to laugh, but instead I began to cry. Angela ran to me, embraced me, said, “Don’t worry, don’t worry, we’ve both done a lot of that. Don’t worry.” Then a little African boy ran into the room, jumped on Jonathan’s lap and said, “Daddy, daddy!” Angela held my hand and said, “Have you met our new adopted son? His name is Joshua.”

I learned that night that Jonathan and Angela were Christians, had been all of their lives, and that after university they had worked as missionaries in Africa. Jonathan helped bring a clean water supply to the region; she set up and ran a school. Christ had formed their lives, their behavior, their relationship, their love, their sacrifice, and their courage. I should have known this years earlier but I was—yes—too busy trying to look at Angela’s legs. That was an evening, a Christmas, and a Midnight Mass I will never forget.

Let me be candid. There are times when I wonder if it’s all worth it. The internal politics of the Church; the ambitious Catholics—clergy and laity—who gossip and betray; those who are never happy unless they are condemning and criticizing the words and actions of others. It was Flannery O’Connor who spoke of suffering for the Church and suffering from the Church. The first is easy and rewarding, and can lead to deeper faith. The second is enervating and painful, and can lead to despair. But whenever I feel the sting, see the unfairness, shudder at the injustice, I try to think of Jonathan, Angela, and little Joshua. But most of all I think of what this season is all about, and it is about He whose birth we celebrate at Christmas.

I know the birth of Jesus Christ may well not have been in December and that it may not have been a stable, but I really could not care less. I have been to Bethlehem, but more importantly Bethlehem has been to me. I have not had to run into burning schools or put my life at risk, and my complaints about ill treatment are generally little more than privileged whines. Nor do I want to be a martyr, if it can be at all avoided. The point, though, is not whether we die for Christ but whether we are willing to die for Christ. If it’s love, it’s total. There’s no middle way when it comes to the romance of faith.

He became a baby so that we could know Him and understand Him properly. This is the quintessence of Christmas, the story of God becoming man—becoming child. Naked vulnerability guaranteeing eternal life. Angela reminded me of this when I spoke to her the day before I returned to Canada those twenty years ago. “Women used to turn and look at my husband in the street because he was so good-looking”, she said. “Now everybody turns and looks at him, but for other reasons.” A pause. “I’ve never stopped looking at him, and never will.”

Never stop looking at Jesus, as a baby, a child, an adult, a man dying on the Cross, a God restored to life, a savior with us until the end of time.\

Have a blessed and wonderful Christmas.

St. John Paul II: A Man of Hope and Joy

Joy Is On Tour

The following comes from Tod Worner:

You know you have heard about it.

The stories of the Pope shaking things up. Gingerly paying his own hotel bill, diving deeply into crowds to shake the furthest hand, warmly engaging the stray child in the middle of a Mass, and kissing the infirm, the repellent, the forgotten.

You know you have heard about it.

But it is utterly stunning to see it.

For one week, Joy has been on tour. The United States and every major news outlet has been transfixed by every move of this beaming, tireless Shepherd. And do you want to know something? It has been the most positive news week I have ever seen. Why is that? Because the media has simply fixed their cameras on a holy man exuding joy and mercy at every turn. At. Every. Turn. And they almost don’t know what to do. That is because the irrepressible message of joy and hope, love and mercy has so utterly eclipsed the petty, trite controversies which are the stock-in-trade of the media. When is the last time you saw Mass, Vespers and prayer services in their entirety on CNN, Fox and MSNBC? When is the last time you heard a scintillating man speaking with uncontainable joy about the indispensability of family, inexhaustible mercy and unfathomable love of God for each an every one of us? Joy, I say, has been on tour.

This morning I began eating breakfast with my family at a hotel in Wisconsin where we visiting the extraordinary Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe. As the television showed Pope Francis driving off in his beloved Fiat (after arriving by plane on the Philadelphia tarmac), my wife and I looked at each other. “He looks tired, doesn’t he?”, my wife said. I nodded and replied, “Just imagine keeping that schedule and energy as a 78 year-old man with sciatica.”

And then he stopped the car.

He waved his arm, the Fiat stopped and he literally bolted out of the car.  Seeming almost to run, he found his way to an obscure corner of the gated off crowds, leaned deeply forward and kissed the forehead of a severely disabled boy in a wheelchair. As he blessed him, his mother looked on and wept. You could simply read the words on her lips, “Thank you.” The boy’s sister, a teenager, was taking a picture of the irreplaceable encounter – and she wept. Like years of pent up worry and heartache were released. And as the Pope warmly looked at the boy and his mother, it was as if he knew. He knew. And his eyes seemed to reassure, “Your life and your son’s were forever changed with his disability. But you loved. You loved without end. And God knows it. And He loves you endlessly through your sufferings, your doubt, your worry. You are loved. You are loved.” As he walked back to the car, it was like all his fatigue had vanished. He had seen Christ in the “least of these” and it had given him new strength.

I nearly cried in the middle of my continental breakfast. It was exactly what Christ would have done. And it was one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen.

Read the rest here!

Don Bosco: "Be brave...!"

"Be brave and try to detach your heart from worldly things. Do your utmost to banish darkness from your mind and come to understand what true, selfless piety is. Through confession, endeavor to purify your heart of anything which may still taint it. Enliven your faith, which is essential to understand and achieve piety."

~Don Bosco

Pope John Paul II: Fearless in hope and love

The following comes from the Washington Post:

In some cities in the USA when a local team wins a basketball game, crowds burn cars. But when John Paul II’s body was lying on view in St. Peter’s Basilica, one first responder, police officer and volunteer worker after the next told me that there had not been a single act of civil disobedience or problem reported. That means something. During the days which preceded his funeral, armed with media credentials I was able to move freely through the checkpoints and channels for the millions, literally, of people who stood in slow moving lines for scores of hours to see the dead Pope’s body for the last time. Peacefulness, prayer and patience reigned.

At the end of the funeral, the wind blew closed the cover of Book of the Gospels. Men lifted John Paul’s coffin onto their shoulders. They stopped before the open doors of the Basilica and slowly pin-wheeled, as if to give him one last public wave. A shout went up, simultaneous because of the huge video screens along the nearby streets. That shout, which echoed across a silent and motionless Rome, may have been the single loudest purely human sound ever raised on high in that City of over 3000 years.

There began the rising chant of the people, “Santo Subito… Sainthood Soon”. It may have been a manifestation of the old adage Vox Populi Vox Dei… The Voice of the People is the Voice of God. I don’t know that, but it was unlike any chant I had ever heard before. Of course when in Rome you hear the word “subito,” especially from a waiter, you almost never expect what you’ve requested to happen quickly. And yet here we are at his beatification.

Leaving aside the issue of the record-breaking speed of the late Pope John Paul II’s beatification (2220 days, 15 days faster the Bl. Mother Teresa of Calcutta), we should all be able to remember and agree on some of the achievements of his life as a good man, a faithful member of his Catholic Church, and life-long disciple of the Lord and Savior he so obviously loved.

A pebble can prompt a tumultuous landslide. John Paul dropped a great many stones. Many of them are still gathering speed. On the geopolitical plane, the visit of John Paul II to his native Poland after his election as pope helped to diminish worldwide the soul annihilating forces of atheistic communism. Within the church, after a decade and more of internal rebellion and chaos, John Paul’s manifest confidence, love of neighbor and focus on the Redeemer of man initiated the gradual rebuilding of order and morale, especially among young people, which continues still under the pontificate of Pope Benedict.

From the early loss of his parents and the hardship of a youth under Nazi occupation, including forced labor and serious injury, to the sorrow of seeing his beloved Poland and her people suffer under communism, from witnessing open defiance on the part of clergy and theologians within the church to being shot by an assassin in St. Peter’s Square, from the horror of emerging of stories about abuse of children, to the ever increasing agony of Parkinson’s Disease which sapped his vitality and imprisoned him in physical weakness, John Paul radiated hope.

Even as he became smaller, he seemed to become all the greater, for it was Christ who increased in him. Young people were inspired by his joy. The frail elderly man gradually brightened as a beacon of hope to us all. Let us not forget that we too are daily drawing closer to our own decline and death with their attendant pains and challenges. We will be no less precious and valuable when we grow weaker. In his choice to suffer publicly, John Paul taught us that love of God and beauty of soul are the truly human values which matter, not wealth or youthful beauty or passing worldly goods. John Paul stood as a sign of contradiction in an increasingly shallow and materialist age.

John Paul strode onto the church’s stage announcing a virile, muscular Catholicism even as he relentlessly taught in his writing and preaching about the dignity of the human person, that we must not treat others – especially women, unborn and the elderly - as objects to be used or discarded for our own selfish convenience. Each person, from the defenseless unborn to the defenseless senior, is precious in God’s sight and made in God’s image and likeness. John Paul’s “theology of the body,” as it has been dubbed, presented a view of man with which countless young people were able to resonate.

As Blessed John Paul, or just plain pope, or simply Karol, he was a giant of a man who persevered in his simple message to his very last heartbeat: Do not be afraid to love your Lord with all your heart and strength and love your neighbor as you love yourself.

For more from Fr. Z please click here.

Fatima and Hope

Dr. Scott Hahn: Faith and Hope are Distinct

An Act of Hope and Confidence in God by St. Claude De La Colombiere

My God, I believe most firmly that Thou watchest over all who hope in Thee, and that we can want for nothing when we rely upon Thee in all things; therefore I am resolved for the future to have no anxieties, and to cast all my cares upon Thee.

People may deprive me of worldly goods and of honors; sickness may take from me my strength and the means of serving Thee; I may even lose Thy grace by sin; but my trust shall never leave me. I will preserve it to the last moment of my life, and the powers of hell shall seek in vain to wrestle it from me.

Let others seek happiness in their wealth, in their talents; let them trust to the purity of their lives, the severity of their mortifications, to the number of their good works, the fervor of their prayers; as for me, O my God, in my very confidence lies all my hope. “For Thou, O Lord, singularly has settled me in hope.” This confidence can never be in vain. “No one has hoped in the Lord and has been confounded.”

I am assured, therefore, of my eternal happiness, for I firmly hope for it, and all my hope is in Thee. “In Thee, O Lord, I have hoped; let me never be confounded.”

I know, alas! I know but too well that I am frail and changable; I know the power of temptation against the strongest virtue. I have seen stars fall from heaven, and pillars of firmament totter; but these things alarm me not. While I hope in Thee I am sheltered from all misfortune, and I am sure that my trust shall endure, for I rely upon Thee to sustain this unfailing hope.

Finally, I know that my confidence cannot exceed Thy bounty, and that I shall never receive less than I have hoped for from Thee. Therefore I hope that Thou wilt sustain me against my evil inclinations; that Thou wilt protect me against the most furious assults of the evil one, and that Thou wilt cause my weakness to triumph over my most powerful enemies. I hope that Thou wilt never cease to love me, and that I shall love Thee unceasingly. “In Thee, O Lord, have I hoped; let me never be confounded.”

Pope Francis Message to the Sick

A Sign of of Hope in the Philippines

The above picture is from Tacloban, Philippines.  Our Lady of Lourdes with St. Bernadette remain as images of hope amidst the destruction of Typhoon Haiyan.

The lower image is from Brooklyn, NY following Hurricane Sandy in 2012.

You can donate to help the victims of this disaster by going to the Salesians Missions and giving to Typhoon Haiyan Relief in Philippines.

Must See TV: Giving is the best communication

Pope to the Youth: A young person without hope is not a young person

September 23, 2013 (Romereports.com) It seemed like another World Youth Day, except this wasn't Rio, but the Italian island of Sardinia. The Pope met with thousands of young people during his apostolic visit. Surrounded by applause, the Pope addressed the crowd directly, and at times mixing his Italian with Spanish.   

POPE FRANCIS 

“Some of your 'preguntas,' or rather questions. I guess I also speak a type of 'dialect' right?"     

The Pope called on the youth to not abandon the Church. He specifically talked about a common trend that needs to stop. 

POPE FRANCIS 

“While reading your questions, I noticed this. The Sacrament of Confirmation. What's the name of this Sacrament? Is it Confirmation? No. The name has changed to the 'farewell' Sacrament. After this, youths leave the Church. Right? This is a failed experience.” 

The Pope then encouraged them to have real hope for the future. 

POPE FRANCIS 

“As young people you can't and shouldn't lose hope. It's simply part of your nature. A young person without hope isn't young. It's someone who has aged too soon.” 

Clearly referencing the use of drugs and alcohol, the Pope warned about the dangers that come when one looks for hope in all the wrong places. 

POPE FRANCIS

“You know, these merchants of death. Those who sell death, offering a new route when you're sad, without hope, without confidence, or strength. Please do not sell your youth to these death dealers. You know what I'm talking about. All of you understand. Don't sell your life.” 

It was 60 years ago that the Pope felt a strong calling to become a priest. He talked about this personal experience during his visit. 

POPE FRANCIS 

“I don't regret it. I do not! You may ask, -why?- Is it because I feel like Tarzan and I'm strong enough to keep going? No. I don't regret it because at all times, even in the darkest moments of sin, of weakness and failure, I looked toward Jesus and I believed in Him. He has never abandoned me.” 

To thank him for his visit, a youth group performed for the Pope, singing and dancing to traditional music of the island of Sardinia. 

Fr. Robert Barron on Faith, Hope and Love

Pope Francis in Castelgandolfo: Open the doors to hope

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Sunday visited the hill top town of Castelgandolfo, urging the thousands of locals and visitors to be visible signs of hope and peace in the world. Some ten thousand people, led by the mayor and bishop of nearby Albano, gathered in the square and side streets surrounding the papal summer residence ahead of the Holy Father’s arrival on Sunday morning. 

Greeting each and every well-wisher in Castelgandolfo, Pope Francis thanked especially the religious and civil authorities, as well as all the staff who work in the Pontifical Villa where popes have traditionally spent time over the summer period – in particular he remembered his two immediate predecessors, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI and Blessed Pope John Paul II

Speaking at the midday Angelus prayer, Pope Francis reflected on the Sunday Gospel which recounts the story of the Good Samaritan and recalled the figure of a 16^th century Italian priest who is popularly known as a patron saint of the sick and all who care for them.
St Camillo de Lellis, who died on July 14^th 1614, founded a congregation known as the Camillians recognized by a large red cross on their cassocks which they wore as they took care of the sick and dying on the battlefield. Today, the anniversary of his death, marks the opening of a year of celebrations for the four centenaries of those who have followed in his footsteps and Pope Francis prayed especially for all doctors, nurses and healthcare workers who continue to work as Good Samaritans in our suffering world today. 

The Pope also looked ahead to his forthcoming visit to Brazil to celebrate World Youth Day with hundreds of thousands of young people from all over the world. He prayed for all those taking part in the pilgrimage to Rio de Janeiro, that their hearts may be open to the mission that Christ gives them.

Joking with his enthusiastic audience, Pope Francis said there are clearly many young people here today, but he congratulated everyone present for feeling 'young at heart!'

Following the recitation of the Angelus prayer, Pope Francis remembered Christians in Ukraine who are today marking the 70^th anniversary of a Second World War massacre of tens of thousands of Polish civilians by a Ukrainian nationalist militia. The Pope prayed for all the dead and injured, as well as asking God for the grace of true reconciliation between the peoples of Poland and Ukraine.

The Short but Blessed Life of Zach Sobiech

Zach Sobiech, at the age of 14, found out he had a rare form of terminal cancer. So he became a rock star, and millions of people got to see his music before he passed away on May 20, 2013. This is his beautiful story.

A Time of Hope

Pope Francis on Hope

Optimism versus hope: "It's best to not confuse optimism with hope. Optimism is a psychological attitude toward life. Hope goes further. It is an anchor that one hurls toward the future, it's what lets you pull on the line and reach what you're aiming for" and head in "the right direction." Hope is also theological: "God is there, too."

Pope Francis

Fr. Robert Barron: Additional Commentary on Faith, Hope and Love